30 College Tools Which Make College Life as Easy as ABC

College isn’t that difficult, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make the experience a whole lot easier. Don’t struggle through your time, get through it like a boss with these 30 college tools that will make college easier than ever.

Personalize and direct your own learning. Test yourself and improve yourself with this tool. It puts the responsibility for learning back in the hands of the student. You may be passing your mock exams in college while failing your own grade system if you decide to be strict with yourself. It is a very good and serviceable exam-preparation tool.

With this tool, you may make the world of your study group. You may get instant help from a stranger who you find online. You may volunteer, or you may simply take from the community, it is up to you. You may earn volunteer credentials, which you may add to your CV.

Need help to completing your assignment because you have been ill, or because you have forgotten about the deadline, then do what so many others do and have another person write it. The assignment writing service is able to write essays and academic work within a very short space of time, which gives students a little breathing room.

Is it just a big website full of written tips for students? Yes, but why would you need more? There are thousands of online articles that give tips for students, so instead of searching the Internet for a few here and a few there, you may read comprehensive tip lists in one place. Some of the tips are not what you want to hear, and some may upset your parents, but they are mostly true and will save you a lot of trouble and heartache if you take them on board.

This is simply a YouTube converter. Most students want a YouTube converter because you can download any song you like with it without having to pay. However, many students are tired of using converters that tag malware onto the download, or that you use third-party advertising that redirects to malicious sites. Therefore, Flvto has become popular amongst students because of the things it doesn’t do.

There is no direct benefit to using this website. It is often described by students as the Yelp of the professor-rating world. You are supposed to rate your professors and see other professor ratings. Rate your professors so that other students may see your ratings and pick their classes and institutions a little more wisely.

As student planners go, this is probably one of the best. It is certainly one of the highest rated. It has quite a few functions, which means that using it is not as simple as many other planning tools. However, its complexity makes it far more useful than its nearest competitors. The color-coding system is also very convenient.

The TED conferences are as useful as you make them. After all, even some of the most esteemed speakers are able to give terrible presentations. Sadly, it is often filled with people that seem to consider themselves experts and use the TED to validate their high ego. Nevertheless, if you are willing to give it a try, you may find a few lectures that are worth your time.

Mint is rather well known in the student community for helping people manage their budgets and their money a little better. There is a section on the website that offers you a series of savings, or you may jump right in and start using the online system that allows you to set up budgets and then manage them in real time.

This is a learning tool that helps you remember your course content by showing you basic facts and key concepts. The idea is that you will always get a passing score if you learn the very basics, and then anything you learn after that point is simply increasing your overall score. You may add notes, journal excerpts, and mind maps.

Students that are used to backing up their files will love this tool. Sadly, you have to pay for it, and the website is annoying with its live chat popping up, but if you have the money and you backup a lot, you should consider this tool. It allows you to backup your files with the same file structure that you have on your computer and/or phone right now. It makes backing up a little easier and far more convenient.

Create your own study set with this tool and learn whichever way you see fit. Use other people’s flashcards and quizzes, or make your own along with making your own learning games. It makes learning a little easier and a little less tedious.

In essence, this game is trying to be your personal trainer. It gives you customized workout routines that you may try while you are out and about. It gives you workouts for cardio, for strength and for yoga. It will also take you through your stretches too.

The downloadable version is rather goods because it gives you over 2 million word definitions that you may research offline. It also has an offline thesaurus you may use, and if you are online, you may also use the translation software. It is easy to use and it has a word-of-the-day function to help increase your vocabulary.

The Koofers website is good for students that can afford to use it. The website allows students to rate their professors, to revise, and to practice by using Koofer’s mock tests. It is mainly a study website that was created as an alternative to other teaching mediums. It gives students another way of revising, but you will need to pay for their best studying services.

The Study Blue is great because it offers students a variety of digital tools that they can use to revise and learn. Most students use thing such as their Flashcards to learn, and some use their testing tools to hone their skills. The website is free to use at first, but you do need to start paying if you want their best features like access to their flashcards library.

This is an iOS app that tries to get you out of bed by forcing you to go to another room. The way it does it is to have you take a target location image. This is a location that is not to close to your bed, but is not too far for you to get to. When your alarm goes off, the only way you may turn it off is to go to the target location and take a photo. It also has countermeasures in case you try to fool it.

Half is eBay’s answer to Amazon, where you may sell your books, movies, games and music without paying any fees upfront. Instead, you pay your fees at the end of the month if your items sell. One of the great things about this website is that it is directed and aimed at younger people, and the rental section is good for students that are too worried to download pirates.

The reason why the marketing for Wolfram Alpha is so vague is because they are very much like Wikipedia, but they are trying to pass themselves off as some sort of supercomputer app. Nevertheless, if you are doing research, then you may find content you can reference if you use Wolfram Alpha rather than Wikipedia.

A great many students use Ice Cream Apps as their personal toolbox of apps. There is a PDF converter, an e-book reader, a slideshow maker, an e-book reader, an image resizer, and so forth. Most students are able to live with the free versions and do not need to download the pro versions.

This is a rather odd website because it was created to help people automate their lives in one way of another. The more research and learning you do with regards to how to automate, then the more you get out of the website. The main idea is that you connect your devices and apps, and link them with “if this, then that” statements.

You are able to dictate onto your phone with this tool. Instead of writing on your phone, you are able to speak the words and it types them for you. The only problem is that many times you are not in the position to give yourself little voice notes. For example, you cannot take dictated notes in class, and people may complain if you start writing your essays in the night by talking them out. Nevertheless, if you are sick of typing into your mobile device, then Dragon Dictation may be just what you need.

This website offers a series of deals for students. It is mostly centered on fashion, money products and technology, but you will also find travel options and entertainment deals. The quality of the deals is rarely worth shouting about, but the sheer volume of offers the website has means it is worth trawling through the terrible deals to find the diamonds in the rough.

If you are working as a group for a college and/or university project, you may need to stay in touch with your coworkers. Using Facebook messenger is one way, but it is not very user-friendly and efficient within an academic setting, that is why the Slack tool was invented. It helps you stay in touch, and it helps correctly archive your messages because you will probably need to keep returning to a minority of them in order to continue your project.

Have you forgotten your scientific calculator? If so, you may quickly download this app and start your calculations. It does all the things a regular scientific calculator does with the only exception being that you are not allowed to take your phone (and calculator app) into your exams.

This is a library full of audio books, and audio books are fantastic for students. You are able to learn while you ride on busses, drive, cycle and walk. All the time as you listen to the audio book – you are learning. If you listen to music on a regular basis, then replace your song tracks with audio book tracks and learn as you travel. It’s a great way of absorbing larger chunks of information without really having to put a lot of effort in.

There are many to-do list apps out there and this is one of the more popular ones. Students are spoilt for choice when it comes to to-do apps. Is this the best? Some students think so, and some disagree, but few would say it is a bad or useless to-do list app.

If you find yourself being repeatedly distracted by apps and websites, then there is the Freedom app. You will have to pay for the software, but it allows you to install it on tablets and phones, which makes it rather more useful for mobile-obsessed youths. It may help students improve their focus if they use it correctly.

Silence your phone in class with the touch of a button, save your notes, or have your phone remind you when your tests and homework are due. Most students use it as an organizer that is specifically built for college life.

This is a Mac app that you have to download onto your PC or laptop. You set a time and/or date and it helps you avoid distracting websites by stopping you from using/seeing them. It has a few safeguards to stop you abusing the system by trying to switch it off whenever you seek out distraction.

14 Powerful Leadership Traits That All Great Leaders Have

Being a leader of a company or organization is certainly a difficult and often frustrating position – but it can also be tremendously rewarding.

Whether you’re just starting out as a leader, or have been leading for a while, you’ll be sure to benefit from knowing the essential traits that all great leaders possess.

Effective and successful leaders transcend the title of ‘manager’ or ‘boss’. They’ve found a way to achieve the perfect combination of charisma, enthusiasm and self-assurance (with a healthy dose of luck and timing probably added to the mix).

It may seem like some people are gifted with leadership skills, but the truth is most leadership traits can be learned, adopted, and strengthened with time and practice.

As we delve into the list of effective leadership traits, you will learn the behaviors and attitudes of a good leader.

The 14 most important leadership traits

Please read through the list of leadership qualities carefully. Take note of which of the traits you excel at – and which ones you need to work at.

Traits for better self-development

1. Vision and mission

Having a clear picture of what needs to be achieved is a crucial quality of good leadership.

This vision is often communicated in a mission statement, such as this one from Starbucks:

How to develop vision? Spend time pinpointing what you need to achieve, and then plan the steps to get there. Here’s a complete guide on creating your own vision.

2. Self-motivated

It’s no coincidence that successful leaders have an abundance of self-motivation.

Without a decent level of self-motivation, you’ll struggle to become a strong and respected leader. However, if you don’t have a lot of self-motivation right now, don’t despair.

One of the secrets is to have definite goals to keep you motivated at all times. Some people also choose to reward themselves every time they achieve a goal, and this is certainly a good way to keep yourself enthused and motivated. Learn how to set an ambitious yet achievable goal here.

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3. Optimism and positivity

Positive energy is contagious. Great leaders are overflowing with this type of energy.

Not only does a positive mindset make leaders easy to work with, but it also gives them a constant source of inspiration and ideas.

4. Emotional stability

In leadership positions, frustration and stress are daily occurrences. This is why leaders need to have strong and stable emotions. They can’t allow themselves to be easily knocked off track.

If you’re prone to losing your emotional stability when stressed or frustrated, try some of these techniques: breath deeply and slowly for 30 seconds, go for a walk, drink some water (instead of tea or coffee), turn your focus onto something you can resolve. Here’re some effective ways to control your emotions.

5. Self-confidence

Watch a presentation by any CEO and you’ll see that even if they’re not natural presenters – they make up for this by having powerful self-confidence.

It’s not just CEOs who have self-confidence, any successful leader will have this trait in abundance. One reason for this, is that only a confident person can persuade others and gain their respect.

Worried that you have low self-confidence? Try faking it. Psychologists often recommend that if you ‘act’ at being confident, you’ll start to look, sound and feel like you ARE confident. And in time… you will be.

If you look for more ways to boost your self-confidence, this confidence coach has got you some nice advice:

6. Decisiveness

Leaders are frequently called upon to make decisions (some leaders may have to make dozens of decisions every day). In fact, you could say that making decisions is one of the key things a leader must do.

Spend some time observing highly-successful leaders and you’ll see that they are quick to make decisions. They also enjoy making decisions, rather than stressing out like many non-leaders do when they’re asked to decide on something.

Put yourself in the leadership bracket by developing your decision-making skills. Start with small decisions – and then work your way up to bigger and more difficult decisions. Once other people notice your decision-making prowess, they’ll automatically see you as leadership material.

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I know it’s really quite difficult to make the right decisions sometimes, but don’t worry, here’s a guide for you:

7. Passion and enthusiasm

Expressive. Active. Energetic. These are words best describe a passionate leader.

Great leaders are lively, driven and are possessed with zeal and purpose. It’s this passion that helps them achieve big results. If you want to emulate their success, then you need to develop passion and enthusiasm for the work at hand, and the end goals.

Take a look at this Passion Pyramid to find out how importance a leader’s passion is to the team:

One way to do this is to find what motivates you, and keep your focus firmly on that. For example, i f you’re motivated by helping others, then make sure your role and company are both suited to realizing this. If you’re motivated by money, then put your focus on achieving bonuses and pay rises.

8. Accountability and responsibility

Exceptional leaders know that at all times they’ll need to take responsibility for tasks and their results. This includes things likes individual and team performance, as well as being accountable for when things go wrong.

When negative things occur (and you can guarantee they will from time-to-time), a great leader will immediately step in and take responsibility. Initially, they’ll try to resolve the problem in as quick and smooth a way as possible. But if this is not feasible, they’ll be sure to say that the buck stops with them – and they take full responsibility for what has happened.

To develop your leadership skills, you must never shy away from responsibility or accountability. If you prefer to sweep mistakes under the carpet, then you’re demonstrating non-leadership traits. Try owning up to issues and finding solutions to them. By doing this, you’ll immediately gain people’s respect.

9. Focus

Distractions are everywhere. And it takes major focus to stay committed to tasks and goals. The best leaders understand this, and therefore, they’re always looking at ways to boost their team’s focus.

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One way leaders do this, is to keep their team intensely focused on the bigger picture. This might entail allocating specific time for tasks and eliminating any non-essential work.

If you’re easily knocked off track, you’ll need to spend some time boosting your focus. Try planning your day, week, month and year to help ensure that you don’t fall behind with achieving your goals. Check out the 7 strategies of staying super focus recommended by a productivity coach.

10. Ever-learning

Leaders know that to be successful they need to continually update their skills and knowledge. They deliberately learn all they can about their profession and industry, so they’ll able to make confident and assured decisions.

Why is ever learning so important? I’ll leave it to you to find out the reason here:

Imagine a CEO of a solar power company. His company may have amazing solar panels, but when it comes to discussing business with potential buyers, if the CEO or his sales team show a lack of understanding about the solar industry and future trends, etc., they’ll be unlikely to win any business.

It’s exactly the same for you. If you’re a team leader at an electronics store, you should make sure you fully understand all the products that you offer. But go beyond just that, and read about upcoming products and trends that might change what customers are interesting in buying in the future.

Traits for effective communication

11. Empathy

The best leaders understand the feeling of their team members, customers and associates. They know when to praise, and when to discuss problems (usually in private).

Without empathy, leaders will be seen as cold, harsh and lacking understanding. They’re also likely to be regarded as untrustworthy.

One way to ‘put yourself in someone else’s shoes’ is to have regular informal discussions with your colleagues. When you do this, you’ll quickly learn their fears and desires. And when you understand why they have these – you’ll be in a position to express empathy. You can also learn to be more sensitive to others’ needs by taking up these communication skills.

12. Persuasive and influential

Communications are at the heart of all transactions. Whether it’s pitching for a sale or resolving a customer complaint, how you communicate will determine the outcome.

Charismatic leaders such as Richard Branson (Virgin) and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) are confident and persuasive communicators. They know how to win over audiences and leave a lasting impressing in people’s minds.

There’re some common barriers that you’ll have to overcome in order to communicate effectively:

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How to learn effective communication? You could join the world-renowned U.S. nonprofit Toastmasters International. They’ve been training people in the art of public speaking since 1924, and members have included Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, and Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy.

If you don’t have time to join a club, then practice your communications skills at home. You can do this in front of a mirror, or even better, video yourself presenting, and then ask some friends and family members for feedback. You’ll be amazed at what they pick up on.

Traits for ensuring an engaging team

13. Team building

If you put a bunch of random people together, you may have a loose definition of a team. In reality, a real team has purpose, drive – and a leader lighting the way.

If you’ve worked in different teams and with different managers, you’ll no doubt have come to this conclusion:

Managers who treat their team members like children are unpopular with the team. Conversely, managers who treat their team members like adults, are respected and well-liked by the team.

The days of disciplinarian managers are passed. Nowadays, successful team leaders know how to inspire and motivate their team, while keeping a harmonious atmosphere between all team members.

14. Fostering creativity

Solutions to problems are rarely black and white. Often it takes a leader who can ‘think outside the box’ to come up with answers. In other words, a leader must be creative, and also help to foster creativity and innovation throughout their team.

Creativity is not only associated with pursuits such as arts, literature and music, running a team can be just as creative. There will be times every day when you need to come up with ideas and give guidelines for your team to come up with theirs to solve problems.

Leadership is a journey of continuous learning

Leadership is an amazing experience that will take you on roads you’ve never traveled before.

Begin now to build your skills and experience, pick out the traits that you currently lack – and then work on developing those.

It will take tons of practice and time before becoming an effective leader but eventually you will join the ranks of great leaders.